Elastic railkoad-frog



`tmiTEn sTATEs PATENT oEEioE.

' GEO. P. SANBORN AND WILLIS MANSFIELD, OF NEW HAVEN, CONNECTICUT.

ELASTIC RAILROAD-FROG.

Specification of Letters Patent No. 24,664, dated July 5, 1859.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, GEORGE l. SANBORN and Tinus MANsriELii), of NewHaven, Connecticut, have invented a new and uscful ElasticBailroadFi-og, and that the following specification, taken in connectionwith the drawings, is a full, clear, and exact description thereof.

In the drawings: Figure first is a perspective view of the frog-Figsecond is a lon gitudinal section through the center thereof-F ig. thirdis a cross section through the point of the frog-and Fig. fourth is aplan of the bottom plate of the frog showing the bolts.

Frogs for railroads at the present time are usually made of cast ironwith wrought iron or steel points, and are liable to many objectionswhich are Well known to railroad engineers and machinists, one of thechief defects being the rigidity, which causes' heavy jars to the carsand locomotives whose wheels run through the frog. When the cast ironfrogs become worn they cannot be repaired and must be replaced by newones.

By our invention the evils arising from the rigidity or unyieldingquality of the ordinary frog are remedied and our frog can be moreeasily handled and adjusted than the old one, is little if any morecostly and its wearing parts can be removed and replaced with ease, andto accomplish this it is made up of layers of wood and iron bolted toeach other with layers of india rubber interposed, if deemed desirable.

The best construction of frog according to the principles of ourinvention that we know of, and one that has been used with much successin experimental practice is represented in the drawings, and is made asfollows:

A sheet of boiler plate, or heavy wrought iron of proper size is iirstprocured and has drilled or punched through it proper holes for boltsand also for spikes to secure the frog to cross ties if thoughtdesirable. Upon this plate is laid one of wood and upon that again oneof vulcanized india rubber and then another plate of iron, all asclearly shown in the drawings. Above this second iron plate is anotherplate or layer of wood which is surmounted by a third plate of sheetiron, and on top of this last plate of sheet iron are laid the stem ofpoint of the frog, shown at o, needs the` firmest attachment; wetherefore cut a slot through both the uppermost iron and wooden platesand drop the point into the slot, so that its bottom or lower face restsupon the second iron plate from the top (see the two sectional figuresin the drawings). By'such a construction the point is held more firmlythan if it depended only upon the bolts that pass through it.

The uppermost iron plate may be slotted at the ends, and the uppermostwooden plate cut away as shown in the drawings so as to form chairs forthe ends of the rails, which will always secure a proper alinement ofthe rails with the frog. Now t-he india rubber may be dispensed with ormore layers of india rubber may be introduced, and the number of layersof wood or iron may be increased or diminished and the frog stillconstructed in accordance with our invention, as we do not deem theprecise number of layers, a matter of importance, although we believethe number and arrangement as shown, to be the best. The point also mayrest upon the uppermost iron plate and be fastened by bolts only, andthe rails may be held in proper alinement with the frog by other modesthan that shown in the drawings.

A careful examination of the frog will show that it has elasticity bothin vertical and horizontal planes, the former being due to theelasticity of the materials and the fact that they are disposed inlayers, each one of which is thin when compared with the whole thicknessof the frog; and the latter to the same cause, and the elasticity of thebolts, and the slight play they have in the bolt holes. It is alsoevident that the frog may be constructed cheaply and that it is muchlighter, easier to handle, and to i specified, whereby the frog may bekept in adjust than the ordinary cast iron frogs. alinement asdescribed. j

We claim as of our own invention- Y Y In testimony whereof we havehereunto l. An elastic frog constructed of layers subscribed our naineson this' 30th day of 5 0f plate metal and Wood substantially in April A.D. 1859.

the manner specied andeither .with or GEO. I). SANBORN.

Without layers of vulcanized rubber. WILLIS MANSFIELD.

2. And also We claim constructing an In presence 0f elastic frog withend slots suitable to re- W. E. WORTHEN, 10 ceive the lower flange andneck of a rail, as JOHN AVERY, Jr.

